Welcome to the White Knight

Back in the early 1950's, a family opened a small diner downtown.  They called their small diner: The White Knight Diner.  The small diner, held about 16-18 people and was situated at a busy intersection of what is now near 18th and Olive.  From what you can see now, driving about, this was perhaps the only restaurant for many years downtown.  Unlike other restaurants that come and go downtown, this diner has been open, since the 1950's.  It wasn't closed down for a bit through the years, it wasn't closed down to remodel it and it doesn't even close down when the weather is bad.  The diner is there and looks just like it did, 60 something years ago.

What you have inside, is a large American Flag, lots of pictures and other memorabilia, white metal sheets on the walls and ceiling and a small cook's line behind a counter.  It looks like any other diner would. But while it may look like it has been stuck in a time warp for the past half century, the food is great and it has very reasonable prices.  They serve lunch and breakfast all day and even have a Facebook and Foursquare page, which is always a plus.

So, what did I order?  Well, it was 10:20 on a Wednesday morning.  My wife was at the dentist downtown and I had time to spare.  Whenever we are downtown, for one reason or another, we see this diner but have never gone in, much less I never knew that it was even there or had been there this long!  Basically, I walked in to look around, I was still full from my breakfast at 9:00 am and decided to try to order a burger and see how it was.  I mean, the burger was 1/4 pound and was only $2.59!  So, I ordered it and when I got it, it tasted great.  It was a simple but perfect burger, like the kind you would get at 5 Guys Burgers and Fries.  It was just a simple burger and cooked right and with all of the other things on the bun, it was just perfect for a mid morning snack, or second breakfast as my wife would put it.  

So, what did I think?  I would give the burger a simple 3 and 1/2 out of 5 stars.  Was it high tech? No.  Was it something new that I had never had? No.  Was it good and would I order it again?  Yes.  Would I suggest it and this place to others?  Yes.  It was actually so good, that even though I was still full and not very hungry, I wasn't expecting to eat the whole thing and I did anyway.  It was very good.  

If you are downtown, and looking for a good burger, don't go to TGI Fridays and don't go to Hooters: Go to White Knight Diner.  

https://www.facebook.com/Whiteknightdiner?fref=ts

5 guys with pictures

Last time I wasn't ready but on Friday when my family had the whole day off of work and school, we decided to take the day at the Botanical Garden. We had to eat somewhere and I was in the mood for a burger, a big, thick, juicy burger. So, I drove my family about 7 minutes away and delivered them to the care of 5 guys. I did a review in the past and while I think that first impressions are essential, I believe that the same expectations should be met on further trips as well.This time, with my camera in hand, I had a burger with different toppings, two kinds of fries and my wife got a burger and the kids got a bacon covered hot dog.
So right out, my burger was great, a good 3 &1/2 out of 5, my kids' hot dog which I tried was a good Hebrew National dog which was a 3 & 1/2 stars as well and I have some photos to show why the french fries are so tasty but so bad for you. What you see here, is the inside of the bag, with a regular, not large, order of french fries.
French fries are french fries and while I have had shoe string and thick steak cut, these are okay at maybe a 2 & 1/2 out of 5 stars. But here are the photos and there you go.

Five guys with no pictures

I was in the Kirkwood area, right by the hotels on Watson, and I was getting hungry. Instead of my first gut instinct of going to the Chipotle', located across from the Hancock Fabrics, I tried something new. Right up the road from that center, across the Lindbergh/Kirkwood road, from the Steak N' Shake, was a new restaurant called Five Guys Burgers and Fries.

Just walking up to the restaurant, you could see that it was pristine and clean inside, much like the Jimmy John's with their clean tile walls and super bright areas. There was white tiles on the walls, from the floor to the ceiling, like a diner, with a border going across with red and white checkerboard, about half way up. The order line was bordered by bags and bags of potatoes, which they apparently use, directly. Instead of having them out front as just a show or a prop, this place uses the vegetable, unlike other prop happy diners.

In this place, you order your food, then move on, grab a bowl of peanuts, find a seat and wait for your food to be called. I ordered a little hamburger and a regular fries, Cajun style. Now, for those of you wanting to go there, you should note that the "little hamburger' is not a kid's burger or a slider; it is just a single patty on a bun. So, I order this single patty burger, with lettuce, grilled onions, tomato, pickles, hot sauce and mayo. The condiments are all free and the burger starts cooking. The french fries, are ordered in two sizes, regular and large. The cup, which looks like it could hold about 16 ounces of liquid, is enough fries to feed two people. I thought that looked a bit weak, but went along with it.

After sitting and enjoying some salted in the shell roasted peanuts, they called my number and I went up for my food. I took a large paper bag back to my seat. I could tell it was good, because there was grease spots starting to eat through the bag. When I opened the bag, I was taken back, as for what I had paid for and ordered was not in this bag. What I pulled out first, was a huge hamburger, wrapped old-school style in a simple piece of foil. It was huge, perfectly cooked and juicy and had everything I ordered on it. AND IT WAS DELICIOUS! I was half expecting the mediocre hamburgers that tend to come out of most diners, like they all do it the same as they have done since the 50's but this was entirely different. It was as filling as a giant Red Robin burger but with more tasty-ness.

As for the french fries, that shocked me the most, as out of the bag I pulled the cup filled with spicy seasoned cut fries, as they were spilling over the rim and inside of the bag, left over was at least 2-3 more handfuls of french fries. This isn't like the 2 or 3 extra french fries that you may find at the bottom of the bag from McDonald's, but this was easily about a pound of french fries, extra. You hear me? EXTRA! I love extra food and even more so, I love extra tasty food.

The burger and fries, be it separately gained a 4 1/2 stars out of 5 and 4 stars out of 5, in my book. The restaurant service was incredible nice, there was no smoking inside, everything was clean, and it was great overall, an easy 4 out of 5 in service.

If you are in the area, you have to stop by, although the food is not for those watching their weight, but for those who love food and love the taste of food. Lastly, as I said that I have no pictures, because when I normally review a restaurant, I bring a camera, but because I didn't think anything of running an errand after work and stopping off for dinner, I didn't bring my camera. But, if you still don't trust me, go there and eat for yourself.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries
1500 S. Kirkwood
Sunset Hills, MO, 63127